Examination
by Lvl34potato
Summary: SSA in training Amai Comtess reminisces on an unsolved case as she and her colleagues begin work on another the case takes the back seat in her mind as her life marches on. Until another body is found, and the case reopened. (rated M for safety)
1. Chapter 1: Doubts

_(AN: I apologize for this being so short, I promise to update it with a much longer chapter real soon!)_

She sat at her desk in the bull pen, eyes silently scanning the page before her. Images of the teams previous case were seared upon her brain. The room was dark, only her light and the dim glow of the l.e.d s upon the computers beside her illuminated the space. She rested her head upon her hand, nails pressing against her lips as she read the final details of the case file. She sighed, closing her pale grey eyes as she moved her hand to pinch the bridge of her nose, pushing her glasses up slightly before removing them with her right hand. Placing them gently upon the desk. The creaking of a door behind her caused her to jump, jamming her shoulder into the wall beside her as she span around to face the sound.  
"what are you doing here this late?" agent Hotchner asked as he stepped out of his office, the glow of her light setting his stoic features into one of presumed anger. The young apprentice pressed her hands together, entwining her fingers as she sighed.  
"well sir, i was just going over the case again, it's been bugging me." She admitted to him, glancing down at her desk as she ran her hand through her hair. Hotch looked down at her, the dark rings beneath her eyes seemed more pronounced than usual, she was likely stressing herself out over the unsub. He had gotten away, but not before kidnapping and murdering 4 young boys. It had angered Hotch to no end when they were told that they were being taken off of the case. But that was three weeks ago, another case had already come and gone. Why was she stuck on this one? He wondered silently to himself but simply sighed, looking down at his watch, 2:30am. How much better was he? He was going home early.  
"go home Amai, get some sleep. I need you ready to work tomorrow." He patted her on the shoulder once before exiting the bull pen. She sat still for just a moment, hotch had just used her first name. Her lips pulled into a smile as she closed the case file before her. After all this time she finally felt like a part of the team. Picking up her bag, she found herself leaving the office and heading home. Perhaps she'd sleep tonight? It seemed like ages since she had, just an endless struggle, laying in bed and staring at the ceiling in complete and utter darkness. Unable to find the solace of sleep.  
looking down, a grim smirk grew on her features as she realized just how pathetic she must look. Fingers tapping on the wheel of her black sedan, leaning forward towards the dashboard. Disheveled hair and unprofessional clothes. the red light flipped to green without her realizing it, caught in her mind a horn woke her from her waking dream. She hit her head on the visor before going, apologizing verbally though no one could hear her. She pulled over to the side of the road, pulling her phone out of her pocket before dialing her co-worker Derek Morgan.  
"hey there sweet thing, what are you doing up at this hour?" His joking flattery came through the phone and she felt as though her ear had been violated. Men like Morgan made her feel uneasy, unclean as strange as that was.  
"i could ask you the same but i think i know the answer you'd give." She spoke, her nerves on edge and the lack of sleep fogging her mind. "i just wanted to know how to reach the bar that you guys always disappear to." She questioned slowly wondering if she was doing the smart thing. Some drinks could calm her down enough to sleep tonight, at very least she could pass out drunk. Sure she'd wake up hung over but it would be worth the sleep.  
"awww gonna come get your drink on with me sweetheart? Ok, just don't get all touchy touchy, that's my job." He joked lightly, he must've heard the stress in her voice. "go down to broadway, turn left on Clark. It's by the blue lounge-" he stopped short, a woman's giggles coming through the line before Amai cleared her throat to get him back on track.  
"Derek?" She asked when she heard him chuckle.  
"oh yeah, next to the blue lounge, use the side door. I'll have Reid meet you there. Now I've gotta go, I've got a sweet thang calling to me." He hung up before she could answer. Her cheeks flushed, what had she done? She didn't expect him to be there still. And Reid was there? Oh god. She couldn't do this! It was like signing over her own death warrant. Whenever she was around men she tripped up, but none so bad as Reid. What could she do? She couldn't back out now, Reid would be waiting for her. She sighed and set off driving down to the bar, trying to fix her hair in the rear view mirror when she was at red lights and applying a clear gloss to her pale lips. She pulled over at the bar, hands shaking as she exited the car and opened the door, hands lingering on the chrome handle. She took a deep breath then entered.


	2. Chapter 2: That awkward moment when

_(AN: Well this is certainly going up sooner than I expected, Hope you enjoy!)_

The door opened in a fluid motion, the smell of alcohol and cigarettes permeated the air as she walked into the bar. she grabbed onto the strap of her courier bag, with both hands as though it were the rope holding her to shore so she didn't float away with the tide. Grey orbs gazed around as she scanned the bar, looking for somewhere to sit, or for Reid to appear before her. Perhaps she had come to the wrong bar? It was possible, right? Just as she had been about to retreat over into a corner seat a hand upon her shoulder had her jumping. A quiet squeak escaping her throat as she spun around to face the owner of said hand. She came face to face with agent Jennifer Jareau, who couldn't help but laugh at her shifty partner. She was so fragile, it reminded her of Reid when he first joined the BAU.  
"Hey, hey, It's just me. Did you think I was some big bad man?" she chuckled as she shook her head, blonde tresses brushing up against her collar-bone, It was clear that she was under the influence. Crimson tinted her cheeks as Amai looked away, shoulders relaxing as she was relived that It had been someone she knew. She liked J.J, she was kind to her unlike so many others she had met in her life. Familiar voices called out to them from the other side of the bar, turning her gaze in that direction she sees Garcia and Emily sitting at a high table, drinks in hand. JJ took her arm, leading her over to the table as she called out to the bartender for two more beers. Morgan was on the floor, dancing with a few scantily dressed women, if you could call rubbing up against someone with your hands touching each other in places only suitable for closed doors 'dancing'. Her eyes widened and she turned her head at the sight, It was embarrassing just being near people like that, it was as though you could feel the sexual tension in the air, something she was unversed in. JJ led her to the table, where she took a seat that had her back turned to Derek. From the corner of her eye she could see Reid at the bar, picking up what looked to be a mojito. the corners of her lips engaged in an epic battle as she fought with herself to keep from smiling at the fact that he was indeed here. Garcia noticed and gestured to Prentiss, pointing at the awkward woman before her with her straw.  
"hey guys, did you know that they served food here?" Reid spoke enthusiastically as he approached the table, drink in hand as he held up a menu, a goofy smile plastered upon his lips as he glanced at them seemingly unaware that Amai had arrived. She pulled her hands down off the table shrinking back and away from the object of her attention, namely the oblivious Dr. Spencer Reid. The women surrounding them surely noticed her actions, and being the great profilers that they were, must have known the reason behind it, though to their credit they did not act upon it. Likely noticing how frail she actually was. But that was hard not to notice, the way she jumped at the slightest noises, hand gestures such as raising your palm to call a cab, and loud noises had her running like a mouse. Gawky, standing at 5'11" without shoes. She emanated signs of physical abuse and mental trauma. It wouldn't help to give her more reasons to be socially awkward. Reid looked down at her, finally realizing that he had been caught up reading the menu instead of watching the door like he was asked to do. She looked beaten, like an emotional wreck. Looking down at her hands, running her fingers along the seam of her pin stripe pants, and hiding behind the veil of onyx hair that separated her from the world. He suddenly felt a pang of guilt, she wasn't comfortable coming here, that much was clear to him as Morgan spoke to her over the phone. Though he could only hear her tone over the music that played in the background. It must have been hard coming to a new place expecting to see a familiar face and being met by no one. He sat his drink down, pulling the seat out beside her before sitting down, holding his hand out to shake her hand his gesture of apology. "Hey Amai..." he spoke softly, looking down as he tapped his nails against the table, head down shoulders in. J.J looked over at Garcia who had her eyes glued to Morgan, no doubt following his every move, sitting on the edge of her seat as she sipped her drink slowly. JJ laughed, tapping her shoulder as she gestured to Emily.  
"Hey, you guys wanna go ruin his dance with that sweet little 'thang'?" She questioned, catching Garcia's attention. She simply smiled widely, sitting her glass down as she stood up, fixing the hem of her purple blouse. Emily stood, knowing what JJ was really after and excited about the idea of encroaching upon Derek's hunting grounds. She pulled off her coat, gently placing it over the back of her chair as she followed the other two women over to the dance floor. Amai followed their movements with wide eyes, the thought of being left alone with Spencer unnerving her. She turned to look at him, he was running his finger tip over the condensation of his glass, and she struggled to find the words to greet him with. Damn she was bad at this, talking with others, being around people...even her friends, could she call them friends? She had only known them for a few months but already felt as though they were family to her. He looked over to her, his lips twitching into a small smile as he caught her gaze. He would be lying if he claimed that he wasn't attracted to her, she was a beautiful woman. At the gesture she fought with herself from shying away, he was her colleague, there was no reason for her to run away from contact. That's what she told herself anyhow, trying to boost her own confidence but sadly failing far too often.  
"So...are you going to get a drink?" Spencer asked as he noticed that the table before her was empty. She followed his line of sight, somewhat startled at his question before realizing that she came to a bar and didn't even go to get her drink. She sighed, dropping her head down onto the table as she laughed at herself. He was surprised by her sudden reaction, but hearing her laugh seemed to take away some of the tension surrounding them.  
"You know, I think I will go get that drink, I came here for one in the first place right?" she spoke into her arm but directed her answer at him. He smiled then, a true smile as she stood up,removing her courier bag and sitting it on her chair, "will you watch my bag?" she asked, receiving a slight nod back before she walked away. She didn't need to leave her bag there, it was light and could easily be pushed out of the way but in all reality she just wanted to know that he would still be there when she got back. Selfish. She noted to herself as she ordered a long island iced tea.  
He watched her walk away, the way her hips swayed as she walked across the room. He could imagine what it would be like to just reach out and touch- NO! that wasn't okay! she was his co-worker, he shouldn't be thinking that. Oh god spencer you've had too much tonight. He yelled at himself as he hit his head against his hand.  
"R-Reid? what are you doing?" Amai questioned as she returned, drink in hand. She tilted her head to the side, curiosity and worry evident in her glossy eyes. He dropped his hand away from his face looking up at her and a light tinge of pink dusted across his cheeks as he smiled, stammering up an excuse that he had a slight headache from the music. She nodded, brows furrowed as she noted the false note in his voice. Perhaps he didn't want to be stuck here with her? She wondered to herself as she sat back down, moving her bag to sit on her lap and taking a sip of her drink. "You don't have to you know..." She spoke softly, nearly inaudible over the loud music streaming through the speakers mounted on the ceiling.  
"Don't have to what?" he asked, truly perplexed by her statement.  
"you don't have to sit here and watch me get drunk, if you want to go join the others I wouldn't blame you." She answered, turning to look at him. he parted his lips, intent on answering her but he couldn't think of what to say. He was there because he wanted to be, but how could he portray that without sounding like a perv? Just as the words came to his mind a man approached them, leaning his elbow on the table beside her, looking her over with lust in his eyes. She was unaware, looking down at her drink until he spoke, drawing her attention.  
"Hey there sweetie, why don't you come dance with me?" he asked but waited for no reply, grabbing her hand as he pulled her from her chair, her bag landing on the tile floor before Spencer's feet. She protested quietly, her whole sense of personal space being intruded upon. She looked back at Reid as the stranger pulled her to the dance floor, eyes wide and full of fear. He stood, unsure of what he'd do to get a man like him away from her. Anger seeped into him as he approached the stranger that held her far too close for comfort. He reeked of booze, like he had bathed in tequila, and his arms held her like a vice. She tried pushing him away to no avail.  
"H-Hey, let her go... she doesn't want to dance with you." Spencer's meek voice rang out, shill to even his own ears. The man looked over at him, eyebrow cocked as he sized up his opponent. Seeing Reid as no threat the man continued on as she increased her struggles. Spencer reached out, grabbing the man's shoulder earning himself a Punch to the face at her expense. His vision blurred as he fell to the ground, she screamed out, calling the attention of Morgan and the others who pulled the man off of her, handcuffing him for assaulting a federal officer. As he faded from conciousness, eyes closing and a bruise forming on his cheek he heard her scream out his name.  
"SPENCER!"


End file.
